IGN AU's Guide to Gaming on the Cheap

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Cash-strapped? Here's our advice.

By IGN Staff

Look, this global recession is cramping all our lifestyles. I mean, my family had to sell its spare yacht the other day. Yes, that's right - NOW WE ONLY HAVE ONE. Now what will we do when Jasper wants to go out on the harbour on the same day as Juniper?! Yes, we're screwed. Apparently, however, some people are feeling the squeeze even more, and according to the Global MoneyMongers Institute* disposable income is at an all-time low. With that in mind, the more frugal gamers out there are looking for value for money. They want bang for their buck! Shop around a little and you'll find all sorts of great sales and second hand bargains, but for the purposes of this feature, we're going to give you some tips for great value games with an RRP under AU $50, as well as some of the best value digitally distributed titles. Let's go system by system. (You can hit the next page if you want to jump straight to PSP, Wii or Xbox 360.)

*Not actually an institution and not actually true.

DS

Geometry Wars: Galaxies Price: AU $49.95 An excellent expansion of the core Geometry Wars concept into a fully fleshed out game, complete with great touch screen implementation. It may take a few moments to move on from the classic dual analogue system, but in the end this works wonderfully. Available at retail.

Geometry and logical deduction - aren't videogames fun?

Picross DS Price: AU $49.95 Think Sudoku is a good puzzle game? Think again – Picross blows it out of the water. The basic idea is to reveal the 'picture' hidden in a grid of tiles through logical deduction, but it's not about the end result, it's about the process, and it's hugely compelling. Very addictive and available at retail.

PC

Audiosurf Price: US $9.99 A puzzle-racer with gameplay that syncs up to any piece of music you can throw at it. Experience your tunes in a whole new way and tap into the Audiosurf community to find out what everyone else is playing to. Available for purchase here.

Crayon Physics Deluxe Price: US $19.95 A charming physics-based puzzle/sandbox game that lets players draw things into existence with an on-screen crayon. Draw in ropes and blocks and wheels to solve the game's many puzzles. Available for purchase here.

Quite the contrabulous fabtraption.

Fallout Collection Price: AU $19.95 If you've thrashed Fallout 3 to within an inch of its life, it may be time to go back and find out where it all started. The Fallout Collection packs Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics. If you ever want to survive a nuclear apocalypse, this is your guide. Awesome stuff. Available at retail.

Neverwinter Nights 2 Price: AU $19.95 It's a couple of years old now, but Neverwinter Nights 2 still holds up as one of the best PC RPGs around. Deep mechanics and an intriguing storyline make this excellent value for under $20. Available at retail.

RedLynx Trials 2: Second Edition Price: US $9.99 Genius. Challenging. Frustrating. This is all that and more, and brings to mind the 'just one more go' mentality of TrackMania as you attempt to navigate your motorbike through a treacherous course. The controls may be simple and the perspective side-on, but the physics make this subtle and challenging. Full online leader board and replay functionality rounds it out. Available for purchase here.

Starcraft Battlechest Price: AU $49.95 With StarCraft II coming soon, there's no better time to brush up on why the original is one of the most enduring RTS titles of all time. This pack comes with StarCraft, StarCraft: Brood War and strategy guides for both. Look around and you can probably get it a bit cheaper too. Available at retail.

World of Goo Price: US $20 An ingenious and thoroughly charming puzzle game where you create structures out of sentient goo balls. World of Goo was one of the best games of 2008 and is a steal for US $20. Available for purchase here.

PS2

God of War II Price: AU $29.95 You can find all sorts of bargains for PlayStation 2 given the system's age and superb catalogue, but few games offer the visceral punch of God of War II, and it remains one of the PS2's greatest titles. Available at retail.

Kratos somehow maintained control of the malfunctioning beast and made a miraculous landing in the Hudson.

Final Fantasy XII Price: AU $49.95 Final Fantasy XII represented quite a change for the venerable series, introducing some very very cool mechanics to the revamped battle and party systems. It may be on PS2 but it's still gorgeous too! Available at retail.

PS3

Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Price: AU $49.95 There's just so much about Uncharted to recommend: it's staggeringly pretty at times, it has a cast of great, well-drawn characters, it exudes a charming pulp adventure vibe, and its mechanics were really progressive. Available at retail, alongside a handful of other great PS3 platinum games. We'd also recommend Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction (AU $49.95) and Resistance: Fall of Man (AU $49.95).

WipEout HD Price: AU $27.95 Okay, so we would have preferred less PSP track remixes and more PSone courses, but there's still no doubt that WipEout HD is an incredible racer. Full HD, 60 frames per second, blistering speed, stylish texture-work, a heap of races types and a stiff career challenge, what more could you want? Available on the PSN Store.

Warhawk Price: AU $49.95 Endlessly entertaining, in Warhawk aerial dogfighting meets ground assaults and it all adds up to an explosive good time. The first full PS3 game available for download via PSN and still good fun today. Throw in an expansion pack or two and you'll be busy for a while. Available on the PSN Store.

Siren: Blood Curse Price: AU $49.95 Twelve episodes of creepy Japanese survival horror in the one package. The previous Siren games were nigh on impenetrable for many, so it's good to see a more accessible, more playable approach here. It's still very strange, of course. Not convinced you'll like it? You could always download just the first chapter (episodes 1-3) for AU $15.95. Available on the PSN Store and at retail.

The Last Guy Price: AU $12.95 Think Snake meets Google Earth meets a Romero zombie flick for this one. Herd survivors through city streets from a top-down viewpoint. Oh, and while you're on PSN, you might also want to think about picking up Super Stardust HD, Echochrome, Lumines Supernova, PixelJunk Monsters and PixelJunk Eden. Cuboid will also be worth a look when it arrives.